I want my mummy
by Linneagb
Summary: Just a sickfic filled with cute parenting, adorable man- flu, and... Spacemonkey?


**Well, yeah, yeah, yeah. I have written sickfics before, and I know Carole's a big part in two of them… but… sickfics are so much fun to write and Carole's motherly…. Instincts or whatever to call them is soooooooooooooooooooooooooo cute. So if it bothers you that I write sickfics all the time- get over it. **

**Somewhere in season three- I don't know where- it's said that Sam live with the Hudmel's. Just… to clear everything up**

There had been two months since Samuel Evans had moved from Kentucky, from his family, to move back to Lima, Ohio on his own to be a part of the glee- club at William McKinley High School- commonly known as the New Directions.

When Samuel- more known as Sam had first moved back to Ohio, he had straight away been welcomed to live with the Hudson- Hummel´s, with his two friends from the glee club, Finn Hudson and Kurt Hummel, Kurt´s dad Burt Hummel, and of course also Finn´s mum Carole Hudson- Hummel. Sam had been nervous at the very start, he had been hanging out a lot with both Kurt and Finn earlier. But living with them would be a whole other thing, and would Burt and Carole tolerate Sam when he lived under their roof? Sam knew they would, but still he couldn´t help to worry.

But Sam soon realized there had been no need to worry, the first day he came into the Hudmel House, he was chocked to be pulled into a tight embrace by Carole, and a handshake and a warming smile by Burt. Then he had been shown to the guest room to make himself at home.

There had now passed two months since that day, a bit less than two months since New Directions won sectionals, and a bit more than one month since Sam had last seen his family- there as he had been home with his family in Kentucky over the Christmas holidays. A little more than one month since the day Sam stood at the train- station, whiping tears of his sister´s, brother´s and mother´s cheeks, before hugging them all- and then turning around to get on the train.

For Christmas- Sam had received framed photos from his family, one with his sister, one with his brother, one with both of his parents and one with them all five. The photos now stood on the desk in his room.

Every other night Sam called his family and spoke with them all for a while, and every weekend he lent Finn´s computer to Skype with them. But despite all this- and that Burt and Carole- especially Carole were always trying their best to make Sam feel like home, Samuel missed his family very much. But little he knew, that there hadn´t been one day before that Saturday, that he had missed them as much as he´d do this day.

On the Friday afternoon where the actually story starts, Finn, Kurt and Sam were walking home from school, Sam though- was walking a little bit behind the others, as he was having trouble keeping up.

"Come on now Sam" Finn Hudson nagged on his blonde friend. "Walk a little faster."

"I´ve already told you." Sam stroke his forehead- he felt a light pounding beneath his forehead, trying to ignore the beginning headache, though it was getting harder and harder to do so.

"Told us what?" Kurt Hummel looked confused.

"You can just walk ahead… I don´t get why you´re going home anyway, you´re just going home to turn in the door and then spend your weekends at Rachel and Blaine´s."

"That´s not the point." Finn complained. "The point is- Sam walk a little faster."

"Walk ahead." Sam sighed. "I´m trying to think anyways, I´ll catch up." Finn turned around and stomped away. Kurt hesitated for a couple of seconds, before he as well, turned around and walked down the block. Sam stopped for a couple of seconds, then kept on walking, one step at the time.

Sam was now tired- not as usual after a tough week in school, or after a work- out. No, he didn´t have any energy at all. His legs felt like concrete, and all of his willpower took to keep on walking, instead of just collapsing on the street, at last, when he reached the Hudmel- house and stepped over the threshold, he sunk down on the bench in the hallway.

"Sam?" He heard Carole´s voice from the kitchen.

"Mhm." He groaned back.

"Finn and Kurt left about ten minu… Sam? You´re okay sweetie?" Carole laid one hand on Sam's back and sat down next to him.

"I´ve got a headache." Sam´s speaking was not much more than a whisper, Carole lifted her left and felt Sam's forehead.

"Hmm, the flu's been going around at McKinley, maybe you've caught it."

"No…" Sam protested. "It's probably just a migraine, I'll go rest. It'll fade." Sam stood up on shaky legs, and immediately sunk down on the bench again.

"Oh you poor thing." Carole pulled down the zipper on Sam´s coat and pulled it off him. "Come on, I´ll help you get to bed." Sam pulled his shoes off, and Carole helped him to stand up with his arm around her shoulders. Already now, Sam was half asleep, so he more fell than laid down in the sofa in the living room, pulled up his legs and hugged himself. Carole smiled, unfolded a blanket and tucked it around the blonde in the sofa. Afterwards she ran a hand over Sam's blonde hair, and kneeled down next to the sofa.

"Just holler if you need anything okay?"

"Mhm." Sam groaned, more asleep than awake.

"Hello! Anyone home?" Burt Hummel shouted when he came home, Carole rushed out in the hallway and held a finger to her lips to show him to be quiet.

"Sam's sleeping. He had a headache and possibly a temperature, I don't want to wake him up." Burt nodded, and when he passed the living room to get into the kitchen, he turned his head to look at the sleeping boy. He smiled slightly, and then followed his wife to prepare dinner in the kitchen.

**Sam POV**

"Sam… Sammy dear? Carole's voice reached my ears as someone was shaking my shoulder. "Can you wake up for me?"

"Mhm" I groaned "Wha'?"

"Dinner's ready. Does your head still hurt?" I opened my eyes and sat up I shook my head, but I knew that Carole knew it was a lie. I just didn't want to worry her- she would always worry too much. I sat up, and pulled myself up to standing on my own two feet. I stumbled through the door into the kitchen, sat down and tried to rub the sleep out of my eyes to see clearly.

"You okay buddy?" Burt clapped my shoulder. I nodded, but it made the headache escalate, and as my hand reached up towards my forehead, I couldn't help but moan.

"Are you sure you're alright?" I felt Carole's hand towards my forehead. I pulled away.

"I'm fine." Carole smiled to me and passed me the mashed potatoes, but she had a distressed look in her eyes, as she looked to me again. I put food on my plate and ate, but every bite felt as if it was growing in my mouth, when Burt and Carole had finished eating, I had ate not even half of mine, and threw the rest in the compost bin. I saw the two send distressed looks after me, but I just waved their questions of with another "I'm fine."

I laid down on my stomach in the sofa and turned the TV on. A modern family- marathon was running the whole afternoon, evening and half the night, so I turned it on and half- watched the incredibly weird life of the Dunphy´s, Pritchett's, Tucker's and Delgado's while I was trying to decide whether I should go ask Carole and Burt if they had an aspirin- or whether I should just stay here and act like nothing. At last- when a high- pitch note from Cameron Tucker (and boy, he made me think of Kurt) made the headache escalate once again, I pushed myself up from the sofa and stumbled into the kitchen.

"Have either of you got an aspirin?" I asked the two sitting by the table, and leaned against the door frame. Carole stood up and came over to me- again she tried to feel my forehead, as she stroked away the blonde tresses to feel if my forehead was warm with fever, she slightly shook her head.

"You don't feel warm sweetie, have you still got a headache?" I nodded. "I'll see if I can find an aspirin for you."

**Carole POV **

Sam laid in that sofa through the whole afternoon- he seemed very tired and I wasn't sure if I believed him when he told me his headache was gone. I placed a box with aspirin and a glass of water by him on the living room table without him asking for it later.

When I and Burt came into the living room late that evening- to walk up the stairs and go to bed- we had already assumed that Sam had went to bed- because we hadn't heard a sound from him for about four hours- we found him in the living room sofa, deeply asleep. I smiled slightly, while thinking about whether we should just leave him there or…

"Come on scooter." Burt said, and scooped the teenager up in his arms. Sam groaned, but didn't wake up, as his head resting limp against the elder man's shoulder. I pulled away the covers from the bed and Burt laid him down, as I pulled the covers over Sam. The blonde boy groaned and rolled over to his side- but I was happy we'd managed to get him to bed without waking him up, as I combed a hair through the fringe to feel if he was warm- he still didn't feel warm- but he had seemed so very "off" today- hmm- maybe he was just tired after this long week in school, I thought as I and Burt tip- toed out of the room and headed for our own.

"Do you think he's caught something?" Burt asked me. I shrugged.

"He may have- I guess it will show tomorrow." I answered him as I lifted the covers and crawled into bed- I fell asleep with the thought that Sam would probably seem better in the morning.

**Sam POV**

I groaned and began to open my eyes, I noticed I laid in my bed- hmm- I couldn't remember anything from after I laid in the sofa- and the Dunphy's old car rolled over a hill, and then… my eye- lids started getting really heavy. How did I end up here?

One glance at the clock told me it was right after three A.M. And suddenly I felt what had woken me up, I was thirsty- really thirsty. My mouth and throat was dry like the Sahara desert and I was sweating worse than the whole football team- together- after a game, as I pulled the covers of me and stood up. I decided to go downstairs for a glass of water first and then change to something more comfortable later. Hopefully that box with aspirin would still lay on the living room table- my headache hadn't gone any better since earlier- geez what was this? I thought as I walked drowsily out of the room.

When I was in the middle of the stairs I suddenly got so dizzy I had to hold on to the rail not to fall over as everything was spinning. I didn't want to fall in the stairs so- holding on to the rail I slowly took one step down, when I took the next everything was spinning and double- I blinked, then took another step- but missed the step- and felt myself stumbling.

**Carole POV **

"CRASH"

Something crashing woke me up- I sat up with a sharp inhalation, and it was followed by more crashes and moans I recognized as Sam's. It came from the stairs so it didn't take much of my mind to work to understand that he had fallen, as I looked to my husband. He was awake too, and looked back on me for a second before we both more jumped then stepped out of bed and ran down the hall and down the stairs. In the bottom of the stairs Sam laid crouched, whimpering quietly.

"Sam." I kneeled down by him. "Sam dear, can you hear me?"

"Mhm." He moaned, and opened his eyes. "'m okay." He mumbled and tried to sit up. I gently pushed him down again as my nurse- instincts took over.

"Try not to move sweetie- we gotta make sure you haven't hurt yourself."

"'m okay." Sam mumbled again. "Was just… glass o' water, dizzy…" His voice sounded hoarse.

"Does it hurt anywhere sweetie?" I couldn't spot any bruises.

"No… my head, but it hurt before too."

"Are you sure? Not your back or your neck or anything?" Sam shook his head into my hand, as I felt over the head to find lumps or bruises. Sam sighed and raised on his elbows, I ran my hand over his forehead- brushing the fringe away- and feeling an unusual heat radiating from the skin. I felt it again- no doubt- Sam had a fever.

"Oh sweetie you're burning up. Come on, let's get you to the couch." I and Burt got each arm under Sam's and helped him stand up, the boy let go of me almost instantly and leaned against Burt, as the both males slowly walked- or- stumbled in Sam's case- over to the sofa where Burt helped Sam to sit down. My husband had barely let go of the boy, and he fell over to the side hitting the pillows. Burt looked frowning to me, I smiled slightly, then got the thermometer.

"102.3."The thermometer read when it had beeped. I smiled distressed at Sam. I began unfolding the blanket in the sofa, when I noticed Sam was still wearing the jeans and shirt from yesterday. No wonder he was warm.

"I'm gonna get something lighter for you to wear, is there anything else you need sweetie?"

"Water." Sam mumbled. I smiled at him again, Burt turned around to get a glass of water from the kitchen, while I walked upstairs to get something else for Sam to wear.

"Here you go sweetie." I handed Sam the clothes when I came downstairs again. "Do you want me to stay here or…"

"No," Sam answered me. "You don't have to stay up for me." I smiled, and kissed Sam's head slightly.

"Just holler if you need anything okay." I told him, he nodded, but I wasn't sure he would anyway, as I walked up the stairs back to the bedroom again.

I was woken up multiple hours later, and a glance at the clock told me it was nine in the morning. At first I thought it was the sun shining in through the window that had woken me up, but then I heard Sam coughing from downstairs, and realized it was that.

"No bad pressure in those lungs." Burt said drowsily, as he raised on his elbows and looked frowning to the door. I pushed myself out of the bed and pulled a morning gown over my PJ:s, with Burt right after me I rushed downstairs. Sam was on his back in the sofa, coughing as if his lungs were coming out of his chest. I recognized the dry, loud coughing with short, panicking inhales between whenever he gets a chance as asthma. **(A/N: I'm lucky enough not to have asthma myself, so if I get anything wrong, I'm sorry) **

"Sam?" I combed my fingers through the fringe to feel his forehead with my palm- his fever must have gone up since tonight. "Have you got an inhaler?" Sam nodded.

"I- I- can't." He stuttered.

"I know dear, can you tell me where you've got the meds so I can get it for you." Sam nodded again.

"D- desk- right- dr- draw." I had heard enough to understand that he had asthma- meds in the right desk- drawer. I rushed upstairs and to the room that Sam had as his while he was staying at ours, I pulled out the right drawers in the desk, and almost right away I saw an inhaler in the top one, I grabbed it and rushed downstairs again.

Burt still stood at the exact same point as he had before. Sam had sat up, and the coughing was slightly lighter now, even though it was still clear he had trouble breathing. I sat down next to him, and handed him the inhaler, I started rubbing circles on his back. Sam was trying to breathe in enough for the inhaler to help enough.

"Burt honey?" I turned around. "Can you get me a wet washcloth, a towel and a bowl please." Burt nodded, turned around and walked out of my sight. He came back with the things I had asked for. I put the washcloth against Sam's forehead- in an attempt to cool it down and hopefully make Sam relax a bit, just as he put his lips around the item in his hand, and breathed in.

When Sam pulled the inhaler out of his mouth again. His breathing had slowed down, he was still coughing- but not half as much as before. Burt had sat down on the opposite side of the boy from me, he held the bowl under the teenager's chin when he started coughing up phlegm. Sam retched as it triggered the gagging reflexes. I clapped his back.

"Get it all out sweetie. Then you'll feel better." Sam continued with coughing for another minute or two, eventually he put the inhaler to his lips again and breathed in. When he got it out again he was still sounding out of breath. But the coughing had stopped, as he leaned back against the sofa. He leaned his head backwards against the upper edge of the sofa- cushions. I lifted the wet washcloth again and placed it on his forehead to cool him down. Sweat was dripping from his fringe and he was all soaked in it. Sam opened his eyes after a couple of minutes and looked to me.

"Sorry I woke you up." He mumbled.

"Oh hush sweetie, it's not your fault." I combed my hand through the blonde tresses. "Is there anything you need or want us to get?" Sam opened his eyes half, looked tiredly at me and his words were barely more than a whisper as tears were rising in his eyes.

"I want my mummy." It broke my heart, as Sam sniveled, and let out a half- suppressed sob, I pulled my arm around his shoulders and pulled him close.

"Sch it's okay Sammy." I stroke my hand over the blonde hair. "it's okay. You're okay." Sam sniveled and let out a half suppressed sob as he rested his forehead against my shoulder. He sniveled again as I kept on stroking his hair.

"Do you want me to go and see if I can call your mum?" Sam nodded against my shoulder, I let go of him, Burt clapped Sam's shoulder as the younger man wiped away tears from his eyes.

"I'm sorry." Sam mumbled, I clapped his shoulder while standing up.

"There's nothing to be sorry for sweetie." I walked up to the bedroom and found my cellphone, I walked downstairs again and pressed in Mary Evans' number, then held the phone to my ear. One signal went by, two, three, four, at the fifth I hung up and tried with Dwight's number instead- no answer there either, neither at the home- phone in the Evans- household.

"I'm sorry Sammy. There's no answer anywhere." I placed the phone on the table, Sam looked miserable. "Oh don't be sad. I'm sure they will call as soon as they see that I have called." I stroke the blonde tresses as Sam leaned against me again- Burt had gone upstairs to change clothes. Sam eventually fell asleep still leaning against me. I laid his head down on the pillows, pulled a blanket over him and then left the living room to let the blonde sleep in peace.

Forty five minutes later I heard a slight moan from the living room. I rushed there to find Sam curled up- awake and with his face buried in his hands.

"Sam… you're okay dear?"

"My head." He exclaimed- his voice telling me the enormity of the pain.

"Do you want an aspirin?" Sam nodded into his palms, I went to the kitchen and got a glass of water, the aspirin box still laid on the living room table after yesterday night. I take a pill and help Sam to sit up and take the Aspirin.

"I want my mummy." Sam whimpered. "I want my mummy." Frowning, I pull my fingers through the blonde tresses again.

"I'll try to call her again." I pull my phone out of my pocket and dial Mary's number again. One signal goes by, two, three, four, at the sixth the phone clicks, and there's a voice.

"Hey this is Mary Evans…"

"Hey Mary this is…" Before I've had the chance to continue and finish the sentence the voice is heard again.

"…I'm sorry that I can't answer the phone right now. But leave a message and I'll call as soon as I have the time. Bye." Another signal went by.

"Hey Mary, this is Carole. Sam is ill, he wants you so please call back when you hear this. Good day." I hung up and waited for a half hour, no calls. Sam fell asleep again. I tucked the blanket around him and placed a washcloth on his forehead in an attempt to cool him down.

"I'll just take a ride to the store and get some things." I told Burt out in the kitchen. "Is there something you need honey?"

"No thanks…" Burt looked up from his coffee. "His mum called back yet?" I shook my head.

"No, but I've left her a message, so she'll hopefully return my call soon. If she calls me at the store I'll tell her to call to Sam or the home- phone." I looked through the cupboards and fridge to see what I should buy, and wrote a list of groceries we'd need. When I came into the living room I found Sam sitting leaning against the cushions, half sitting up, looking drowsily at me.

"I'm going to the supermarket." I told him. "Is there anything you need Sweetie?" Sam shrugs.

"Carole?" He mumbles.

"Yes sweetie?"

"Am I being ungrateful?" I frowned.

"No… why would you think that?"

"Because… you're taking care of me and I'm just… I just want my mum."

"Oh sweetie." I brushed away the blonde fringe from Sam's eyes. "Of course you're not being ungrateful… it doesn't matter whoever takes care of you when your ill… your mum will always be the best, and I don't mind you know I don't." Sam nodded.

"I'm sorry anyway… if I'm being ungrateful."

"Don't worry sweetie. So… I'll just run to the store, I'll be gone for maybe an hour. What's your favorite Gatorade?" Sam looked thoughtful.

"Green" he answered after a couple of seconds of thinking. "But… I really don't want to be a burden…"

"Oh hush sweetie. You're never a burden here. Is there anything else you need?" Sam who's been looking down to the floor for the last seconds looks drowsily up at me again and mumbles something that sounds like Spacemonkey

"What?" I ask, a bit confused.

"Spacemonkey… He' s in the box under the wardrobe… I can go get…"

"No… no, you stay here. Box under the wardrobe was it?" Sam nodded slightly, as he laid down again. I turned around and walked upstairs, walked into Sam's room and kneeled in front of the wardrobe. Under the wardrobe a blue box was, I pulled it out and opened it.

I couldn't help but smile when I had opened the box, in the bottom if it there was something that looked and seemed to be a soft mattress, then there was a small quilt and pillow, on the mattress, under the quilt and with its head on the pillow laid a stuffed monkey I assumed to be… "Spacemonkey" and it was revealed when I lifted up the monkey that it had a shirt with a print saying "Spacemonkey", I chuckled and pushed the box back under the wardrobe, then I walked downstairs holding on to the stuffed animal.

"Spacemonkey." Sam exclaimed when he saw me coming downstairs with the monkey. He took it when I reached it to him and held it close to his chest.

"Spacemonkey? That's a special name for a monkey!" I told Sam, secretly hoping I would get an explanation for the name.

"I fell and broke both of my legs in the snowboard hill when I was seven. My dad bought him for me just a few hours later when I was supposed to spend the night at the hospital. I couldn't come up with a name for him, but the next day I had gotten these…. Casts that looks like moon- boots. My mum made up a story about the monkey about it being to the moon and trying out boots from the aliens and coming up with what would be best to use when you have broken your legs. And then he had circled around in Outer space for a while before I broke my legs, and then it came to earth with the moonboots when I broke my legs… Then I named it Spacemonkey, because he had been in outer space." I smiled at the story and shook my head slightly, before grabbing the grocery list and my wallet. Pulling a coat on and walking outside to the car.

I drove in silence to the grocery store, a fifteen minutes' drive away from the Hudson- Hummel, and now also temporarily Evans- household.

"Hey Mrs. H." I heard behind me while at the store. I looked up from the cough- medicine bottle I held in my hand.

"Hi Noah." I greeted back to the boy with the Mohawk in front of me.

"Ehrm…" he began. "I… Can you help me with something?"

"Yes of course. What do you need help with?" The teenager held up two different bottles with cough syrup. Looking with a confused frown between his frown to first the left, and then the right. Both were for children under twelve, so I guessed it was for his sister.

"Sarah's caught the flu or something. Mum gave me a list of things to buy, one of the things was cough syrup… but she only which label it should be. These are both the same so… which one's the right one?" I looked to the bottles.

"Does Sarah have a dry cough?" Noah looked confused. "Is she coughing phlegm?" Noah nodded, I pointed to the right one. "That one should help."

"Okay." The boy put the left in the shelf again. "Thanks Mrs. H." He put the bottle in a basket and turned around towards the cashiers, while I continued towards the shelf with Gatorades.

When I came home half an hour later, almost an hour and a half after I'd left for the store. I went into the kitchen to put the groceries in the fridge and cupboards. Burt sat by the table talking to the phone.

"Okay Lindsey." I heard him say- a woman at his work at the county. "Okay I'll be right there. See you." He hung up and sighed. "I have to go off to work. I'm sorry, but… it's probably just for a couple of hours or three. It's pretty urgent." He kissed the top of my head and went out of the room.

I was done with the groceries when I heard Sam coughing again. It wasn't too bad from the start but it had soon escalated and I could hear the fast inhalations. As I put the Gatorade in the cupboard and walked out in the living room again.

Sam half laid down, leaning against the cushions in the sofa, once again coughing as if his lungs were coming out of his chest, in his hand he still held Spacemonkey clutched to his chest I sat down on the edge of the sofa.

"Sam." I brushed my hand through the blonde's fringe. Hmm… his forehead felt even warmer now, his fever must have gone up. "Sam dear?" He opened his eyes, the panic of not being able to breathe shining from his green eyes. I picked up the inhaler that laid on the living room table and helped Sam to sit up.

"Sch sweetie." I stroke his back while handing him the inhaler. "Try breathing as slowly as possible. You're okay." Sam put the inhaler in his mouth, but pulled it out again when he was interrupted by another coughing fit. I took the bowl standing by the sofa and held it under Sam's chin, he spat and then, as fast as possible put the medicine to his lips and breathed in. It wasn't long before he was interrupted by yet another coughing fit, but it had helped and it wasn't quite as strong as before.

When Sam eventually had gotten a hang of breathing again he clutched Spacemonkey towards a higher part of his chest. Pressing his chin against Spacemonkey's head.

"I want my mummy." He whimpered, a few tears escaping from his eyes and slowly running down his cheeks. I laid my arm around his shoulders and pulled him close. "I want my mummy, I want my mummy." Gosh what was it when Mary hadn't called back yet, I stroke the blonde tresses as Sa, sobbed against my shoulder.

"I want my mummy."

"Sch, I know sweetie." I stroke Sam's hair again. "It's okay." Suddenly there was a knock on the door.

"Come in." I shouted, nothing happened at first. Then there was another knock. "COME IN." I shouted. Still nothing happened. I hated leaving Sam there but I knew I had to.

"I'm just going to see who it is. I'll be back in a minute." I stood up and walked out in the hallway where I opened the door.

"Yes?" I opened the door, and it took me a couple of seconds to recognize the whole Evans' family. Mary stood closest to the door holding on to Stevie's hand, just behind them stood Dwight, Stacey sat on his hip, she had her arms around her stomach and her head was resting against her father's shoulder.

"Hi Carole… Is Sam at home?" Something told me that Mary hadn't gotten my message. I smiled at her, and backed so they could step over the threshold. Then I led them- me first- then Mary, Stevie and Dwight still holding Stacey into the living room.

Sam had pulled up his legs onto the sofa, and where he sat crying silently and Spacemonkey still clutched to his chest he looked more miserable than ever. Mary's look seemed to soften when she looked to her oldest son. Sam looked up and his eyes grew wide when he saw who was there.

"Mummy?" He whimpered, Mary took two fast steps over the floor and then sat down and pulled Sam close to her chest, as she started rocking him and stroking his hair.

"Mummy, mummy, mummy…." Sam exclaimed over and over again, his voice almost breaking.

"Sch Sammy." Mary said stroking her son's hair. "It's okay, I'm here now."

"I can see he introduced you to Spacemonkey." Dwight told me chuckling. I nodded.

"That he did… I've been trying to call you. He's been crying for Mary a few times since this morning." Dwight frowned.

"Oh… we were going to surprise him, and Mary forgot her phone at home and mine has run out of batteries. I'm really sorry. We meant to surprise Sam as the children aren't going back to school until Wednesday, so if it's not too much trouble…"

"You're never trouble, of course you can stay here as long as you want."

"… well, thank you… We wanted to get here already yesterday night, but Stacey gets so car- sick we have to stop and go out of the car pretty often."

"Daddy." Stacey rose her head from Dwight's shoulder. "I don't feel so good!"

"I know you don't sweetie. Do you feel like throwing up?" Stacey shook her head slightly, but she seemed exhausted.

"We've got Gatorade… would you like some to cool your tummy down and maybe you'll feel better?" I asked. Stacey sniveled and looked to me, then slightly nodded. I lifted my hand and stroke away her fringe and felt her forehead. She was soaking with sweat but not unusually warm, as I smiled to her and led Dwight and her out in the kitchen to get a glass with Gatorade.

Dwight sat down with Stacey on the kitchen sofa, I walked out in the living room again and found Mary just about to tuck a blanket around a sleeping Sam.

"Is Stacey ill?" Stevie looked questioning up at me, I smiled to him and shook my head.

"No sweetie I don't think so. She just got a bit car- sick."

"A bit?" Stevie snorted, then looked back to Sam and Mary.

"Is Sam ill?"

"Yes he is." Mary stood up and came over to me.

"I couldn't thank you enough Carole. Sam have a way of getting a bit… mummy- ish when he gets ill. Man- flu you know." I smiled.

"You're welcome. And that I've noticed. But who doesn't?"

"That's a very good question… I'll go see how Stacey's doing… she on the other hand gets very daddy- ish when she's not feeling well." I smiled and nodded to tell I understood we saw that much in the ER. Boys usually clung more to mum, and the girls to their dad.

"Mummy?" I heard a well- known whimper behind me and turned around, there Finn stood. His hair tousled and hugging himself, looking miserable in a way I knew meant that he wasn't feeling too good.

"Oh, Finn honey are you feeling all right?" Finn shook his head and coughed.

"Mummy." He whimpered again, I led him over to the couch, when he had sat down I pulled his jacket and shoes off him and walked out with them in the hallway. When I came back to the living room Finn still sat at the exact same point I'd left him, staring in front of him with a distant look in his eyes.

"Mummy?" He exclaimed, and I was almost sure what was coming.

"Yes sweetie."

"Can you get Rico for me?" I smiled, of course. Rico the bear. A ragged old teddy bear Finn had had since he was a baby.

"Of course sweetie." I walked upstairs and found on the floor in the wardrobe. That was where Finn usually kept Rico- except when he was ill or had nightmares. I took Rico and walked downstairs with it, handing it to Finn that had laid down in the sofa. I unfolded a blanket and tucked it around Finn just as Mary came walking into the living room again.

"There is no one like mummy right?" I shook my head.

"No one like mummy! I agreed. "And an old stuffed animal that he'll the rest of time deny that he ever had even if someone threatened to kill him." Mary laughed and nodded agreeing.

"Yeah… I can see Sam introduced you to Spacemonkey. Has he told you the story behind the name?" I nodded. "Ah, when Sam gets ill you know… he's still the little boy I took care of fifteen years ago when he had the flu and so… do you know what I mean?" I nodded.

"Yep… that's Finn too… but… would we ever want it to stop?" I and Mary looked to each other and at the exact same time we shook our heads and told each other no.

Of course we wouldn't want it to stop, it wasn't that we wished that our boys would be ill. But it was nice to feel needed every once in a while. Feel needed in a way that wasn't too common now when our boys had grown up.

"Mummy." Finn mumbled, I rushed over to his side and kneeled down by the sofa.

"Yes Sweetie."

"I love you."

"I love you too." I helped Finn to sit up so I could sit down and then he lay down with his head in my lap. I started brushing my hair through his hair, and hummed- just as I had been doing all those years ago when he had colic and wouldn't sleep at night.

Because no matter his size, Finn would always be my little boy, I knew that as I could see him clutching Rico to his chest and closing his eyes to go to sleep. When he did things like this I could still see the little boy I had put to bed all those thousands of nights. When he laid like this I could still see the little baby I had given birth to. The three year old I had- my voice almost breaking told that his daddy wouldn't come back anymore, the six year old I sent off to his very first day at "big- boy- school" and the teenage Finn I had held close to my chest when he thought that he'd be a father, then again when he found out he wouldn't. This and everything in between in after them all came together when I sat here with my little boy- my little boy who- in body- size- was a lot bigger than me.

"There sure is nothing like a mum is it." Mary said.

"No… but neither is there anything like a son." I looked up at Mary who bent down and picked up Spacemonkey from the floor and laid it next to Sam instead.

"If I could count all the times I've picked up Spacemonkey from the floor for him…" Mary said with a distant tone in her voice.

"I know… I did the same for Finn with Rico." I told her and looked down at Finn again.

"They still are our little boys. Aren't they?"

"How could that ever change with the man- flu going around every once in a while?" I looked to Mary again, and none of us could help to laugh.

**So well, I had quite hard finding a place to end this but I guess that's an okay place to end it, I've already tried to end it like five times. Well… the picture is a collage I made on my phone. Please review, they really make my day. **

**This is by far the longest chapter I've written. **


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